An hour ago, Xue Jing walked out of the courtyard. A pinkish-purple curtain hung in the sky above the eaves, while the lamp in Ha Yue's house, which was waiting for him to return before dawn, had already gone dark.
I closed the door, washed away my fatigue, and took two melatonin pills, but I was still on edge and couldn't fall asleep no matter how much I tossed and turned in bed.
The prescription had already been written and was designed to treat the symptoms, but the doctor was worried that he had just given the medicine too strong.
He flipped his phone over and tentatively tapped Ha Yue's profile picture. The white puppy twitched twice under his fingertip, and a gray notification appeared. Thankfully, honesty is always the best policy; at least Ha Yue didn't block "Perfect Him" again.
"Although, but..."
"As a neighbor, I should say something."
"You didn't take your clothes, but you also took the insulated container."
After a long pause, Ha Yue slowly replied, "I know."
"Will you come to pick it up tomorrow?"
I've been typing in the dialog box for a long time, but no message has been sent.
He knew she was considering it.
So Xue Jing helped her make a decision, "It's okay, you can come the day after tomorrow if you don't come tomorrow."
There's a day after tomorrow, and another day after that. If I can't figure it out this time, I can talk about it next time.
"There is still plenty of time."
"Take your time. I'm not in a hurry."
After finishing all that, Xue Jing wearily rested his face on the pillow, but as soon as he closed his eyes, he was a little worried that Ha Yue would still remove him from her heart after careful consideration, since his image had completely fallen into the gutter.
So he struggled to prop himself up on his arms, lowered his eyelashes, and sent a few messages that were very much indicative of his plight.
It's like plugging in a fuse before a high-powered appliance blows out. Xue Jing is gambling; even though he's a heinous scoundrel, Ha Yue is still a little worried about him.
"But could you please not be so quick to reject me? After all, inspiration doesn't come easily."
"I've only written a quarter of my new novel. You've been avoiding me these past few days, and I'm having writer's block again."
"I'm so anxious right now, I'm afraid to sleep, I'm under so much pressure. I've taken medication but I still can't sleep, my whole body aches, and I can't breathe. I don't know if I'll be able to keep writing tomorrow."
"Do you think I'll die before I finish writing this? I'm so unwilling to accept that."
There was no response in the chat box when suddenly there was a knock on the gate outside the courtyard.
Before opening the door, Xue Jing hadn't expected that his unconventional actions would have such a synergistic effect. Outside the door, Ha Yue, who had just run away, actually knocked on his door.
The abundant sunlight streamed down from behind Xue Jing, completely enveloping Ha Yue in his shadow.
Xue Jing squinted and immediately noticed that the woman hiding in the shadows with her head down had swollen red eyebrows and yellowish hair. Her heart tightened and she raised her hand to lift the woman's chin to check.
With his middle finger pressed against his earlobe and his palm squeezing his chin, Ha Yue was forced to raise her neck, her face, like a sunflower, forced to meet his gaze. The bright black pupils in front of her eyes had just been turned into a translucent brown by the blinding sunlight. Her brow bone was not too swollen, and her skin was not bleeding. As for her hair…
Why would someone so grown up still play with fire?
How did you hurt your face? And what happened to your hair?
Just as Xue Jing was about to gather her hair with his fingertips, he was rudely pushed aside by the other person using two large boxes.
Ha Yue completely ignored his question and continued, "Hey, do you still stand by what you just said?"
Ha Yue tossed the two boxes of supplies into Xue Jing's arms, then closed the courtyard gate behind her. Without hesitation, she went straight to the shoe cabinet, bent down to change her shoes, leaving her dirty shoes outside, and chattered on, "The community group notified us that Suicheng will be under a state of silence starting today. The road to the front has already been fenced off. Before 6 p.m., only entry is allowed, no exit. I brought you some daily necessities from the store yesterday. The regulations here are strict, so there won't be any errands to run. Is there anything else your family needs? I'll try my best to help."
"Also, can I take a shower at your place? I'll rest for a while before going back, the door is locked and I don't have my key."
Xue Jing followed closely behind her, instinctively sensing that something was wrong. Ignoring her diversionary tactics, he went into the living room without even changing his shoes, put down the cardboard box, took an ice pack from the refrigerator, and placed it on her face. He buzzed around her, saying, "Don't try to fool me. I asked first, what happened? Why did you come back after just one trip home? Did you get into a fight?"
Why are your eyes red? Did you cry?
Ha Yue's family only had one female head of household, and they usually seemed very harmonious. No matter how much Xue Jing guessed, he could never have imagined why she and her mother would fight so violently.
Ha Yue pretended not to hear, still fiddling with the slippers in her hand, muttering to herself, "The grid worker said it's a 3+2 policy, I guess it'll be locked down for at least a week?"
What she said had absolutely nothing to do with what he asked.
Xue Jing simply squatted down in front of her so that their eyes were level, and at the same time, he called her name without any politeness.
"Ha Yue!"
Calling its name is useless; the little sparrow that was just talking so sweetly is now dead, holding an ice pack.
She wasn't seriously injured. With the help of the ice pack, her red skin quickly faded to bluish-white. She was no longer in pain, but she still kept the ice pack full of water droplets on her forehead and refused to look Xue Jing in the eye.
Across from him, Xue Jing scoffed, nodded, and stood up, supporting himself on his knees. His face was grim. "Fine, you're ignoring me, huh? Then I'll go ask you myself. If your mother won't open the door, I'll climb over the wall."
"How many times have I told you I'm not an insurance salesperson? She still scolds me every time she sees me. What does that mean? How do I look like an insurance salesperson? I wear the same things as everyone else! My suits are all haute couture!"
"Hey!" Ha Yue, who was slowly tugging at a loose thread on her pants with her left hand, immediately grabbed his sleeve when she heard him say that, stood up abruptly and stopped him, saying, "You just had a fight with my mom, what's the big deal! You've fought all the time before, haven't you ever seen mothers and daughters arguing?"
"Do you think everyone's family is like yours, with loving parents, filial children, and a harmonious and happy marriage? Even divorced families have their share of ups and downs!"
"Your parents are divorced? I've never heard of that. Huh? I've been staying here for days, and nobody has told me."
Xue Jing, with his keen ear, knew exactly what to say. Ha Yue shoved him away impatiently and casually brushed him off, "It's not that we're divorced, it's just that my dad ran off with someone else when I was little, he cheated on me. So my mom really hates handsome young men. Don't go looking for trouble. You'd better avoid my mom in the future."
"Ah..." Xue Jing gasped. He wasn't someone who was unaware of his own beauty. Because of his family background, he understood from a young age that beauty was an innate resource. When he was in college, in order to pursue Ha Yue, he would deliberately lift his shirt to wipe his sweat on the basketball court and go to the foreign language department to audit her classes while wearing gold-rimmed glasses.
After dating, he became more perceptive, and in recent years, whenever he attended important occasions, if there were women around who needed to be impressed by him, he would dress up in a glamorous manner, just to deliberately show off his appearance.
But this was the first time he had suffered a loss of principal because of his good looks.
Is there really anyone in this world who hates the sugar coating on a cannonball?
His future mother-in-law dislikes his appearance, so perhaps he should decide to wear a tattered cotton-padded jacket and old cloth shoes and not shave starting tomorrow.
Good heavens, thankfully Ha Yue didn't even hear what he was going to say before she left. If she knew who his parents were and what they had done, she would probably spit on his ancestral graves.
Sincerity is acceptable, but knowingly venturing into dangerous territory is foolish. Xue Jing immediately decided to keep his family situation confidential. Good things come to those who wait; he could wait until Ha Yue had fully accepted him before making any further statements.
It would be best to wait until Ha Yue is so deeply in love with him that she can't live without him, and then he can start talking about his family's messy affairs.
"But it shouldn't have gotten this serious, right? Last time I noticed she seemed a bit unwell. Was she always getting angry with you? Did you take her to the hospital for a checkup? Should you see a psychologist?"
"Last time Jinzi told me you went to the hospital to find a nanny, I thought you were looking for a housekeeper. You didn't go looking for a caregiver, did you? Is your mother sick? Is it serious? Say something."
Xue Jing has a strong ability to draw inferences from one instance to another. Seeing that he was about to expose all her secrets, Ha Yue immediately went on high alert and launched into a series of probing questions.
"So, it turns out that running into you at the hospital that day was also something you arranged beforehand? Can't you do something decent? You've made some money, why do you have to play the domineering CEO?"
"You're not in pain anymore, right? And you're not short of breath anymore? You don't need me to help you find inspiration for your new book anymore? Let me tell you, don't ask questions you shouldn't ask. I'm just feeling a bit dazed because I didn't sleep all night, so I came here in a daze. If you keep nagging, I'll take it back immediately!"
"Who cares if you can write or not! What does it matter to me whether you can keep writing? Ask me, who are you to me? Do you think I'll tell you everything? We're just a neighbor having an affair, minding your own business."
The logic was sound, but the words sounded somewhat familiar. "A true man can bend and stretch," Xue Jing thought for two seconds before his mind immediately clicked.
Adults flirt without any taboos, but eventually they will fall in love.
It was presumptuous of him, but it was already very kind of Ha Yue to take the first step. As for what he wanted to know, it was fine to tell her when she was willing to.
Fighting is normal; both Ha Yue and her mother have fiery tempers. The key point is that out of a hundred neighbors to choose from, Ha Yue only sought refuge at his house. Actions speak louder than words; what kind of spoiled brat act is he putting on?
At this stage, his hidden score, which he has painstakingly built up, is now higher than that of Aunt Siqin.
Dating isn't a detective game. Zhao Chunni looks very strong and has a powerful voice when she curses; she definitely doesn't have cancer. Even if she did, it wouldn't matter; he could sell his car, house, and stocks to pay for her to get Akramex injections.
Xue Jing opened his mouth, originally wanting to ask Ha Yue a question.
"Then why didn't you sleep all night? Was it because I didn't go home?"
"Am I really as good-looking as you say? You must be a sucker for looks, otherwise you wouldn't have been able to date me for over two years."
But he swallowed the words back. With a raised eyebrow, Xue Jing immediately changed his expression, narrowing his eyes and saying, "Oh, it's nothing. Everyone has a mouth when they argue. If you're not mute, you have to argue. The important thing is that you should let Auntie calm down after the argument. Don't go back now and make things worse. Stay here and make sure you stay put."
As he spoke, he gestured for us to enter, like a dutiful public bathhouse attendant: "The shower room is on the right, and the light is on the left wall. Toiletries are all provided."
"Don't be shy, make yourself at home. Let me find you a new bath towel."
Damn it, who was it that threatened to climb over the wall just now? Now they're acting like some civilized species.
Ha Yue's right eyelid twitched as she watched Xue Jing's amazing ability to change his expression.
She genuinely didn't know that Zhao Chunni had mistaken him for an insurance salesman, but given her mother's current condition, it was possible that Xue Jing would force his way in and get a beating.
Finally, taking a deep breath, Ha Yue swallowed all the profanities and bowed to him with a fake smile to express her gratitude.
"Okay, thank you. I'll go wash up now."
After the "bowing to each other as husband and wife," Ha Yue rolled her eyes when she looked up again, too lazy to even pretend to be polite, and rudely yelled at her ambiguous partner: "Hey, you, while you're at it, bring in a towel and a pair of scissors too."
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